Roy Rogers rides to bigscreen

Cowboy king returns in film trilogy

Roy Rogers’ iconic presence may be riding back onto the bigscreen in a planned film trilogy to be launched by financier/producer 821 Entertainment.

The Nashville-based company has partnered with the Roy Rogers Family Entertainment Corp. to launch a “King of the Cowboys” film trilogy as well as animated TV, interactive game and merchandising efforts.

821 Entertainment Group CEO Eric Geadelmann said the deal allows his company rights to exploit all the intellectual property controlled by the estate. Deal was made with Roy Rogers Jr. and Jeffrey Kramer, longtime estate gate-keepers.

Geadelmann said the planned film trilogy will “not be a biopic, and will not be a traditional Western, but rather a family fantasy adventure. Roy Rogers, Dale Evans and Trigger are quintessential figures of America, and we will introduce this franchise to a new audience while capitalizing on the millions of Roy Rogers fans worldwide.”

Gaedelmann said Rogers was the personification of the heartland and family values that 821 Entertainment was formed to produce and finance films on. The top Western box office star from 1943-1954, Rogers made more than 88 films with Evans and Trigger; produced and starred in 100 episodes of his own TV show; and appeared on more than 400 licensed items, with 120 million comic books sold.